Mystery surrounds departure of financial boss at Gordon Ramsay's
Celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay has parted company with the chief financial officer of his multi-Michelin-starred restaurant group.
Mystery surrounds the departure of Nick Fletcher, who is understood to have left Gordon Ramsay Holdings (GRH) earlier this summer.
Although documents were filed at Companies House last week stating that the group had "terminated" Fletcher's appointment, it is believed that he left the group a few months ago.
The termination means Fletcher is no longer a director at nearly 20 of Ramsay's companies. However he still appears as director of five remaining companies, three of which are overdue in filing company information, making Fletcher and Ramsay liable for criminal proceedings and a £5,000 fine.
GRH declined to comment on Fletcher's exit. A spokeswoman said: "We never comment on employment issues."
Fletcher's departure from GRH came shortly after that of the group's former head of operations, Gillian Thomson, who left in May.
Thomson, who spent eight years with GRH overseeing the company's UK and global expansion, left to join contract caterer Company of Cooks as managing director.
It has been a difficult year for GRH, which this year saw profits plummet by 90%, falling from £3m to £383,325.
With its net debt more than doubling from £4m to £9.5m, GRH was forced to give up control of many of its overseas restaurants, including those in Paris, Los Angeles and Prague, to the hotels they are housed in.
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By Kerstin Kühn
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